NEWPORT NEWS — People Express airlines has been given a four-and-a-half-month extension on a $500,000, taxpayer-financed loan, providing the startup more time to complete the purchase of a charter airline and begin operations at the Newport News airport. A committee that supports the Newport News-Williamsburg International Airport granted the original loan in January, with the paperwork approved through the Newport News Economic Development Authority. The committee — called the Regional Air Service Enhancement Committee — voted on Friday to grant an extension on the loan to July 15. The Newport News EDA also voted Friday in favor of an extension.

Virginia, Ohio, Wisconsin and Wyoming might have economic differences, but senators from these four states see a common problem that could choke off any recovery: a lack of workers in the skilled trades. In Virginia, the challenge is evident in shipbuilding and ship repair, where the average worker age is 55 and 18,000 will leave the industry by decade's end, according to one survey. In Ohio, the same story surfaces in manufacturing, where a tool-and-die maker called a legislative town hall to point out the graying of the work force.

Three weeks ago, I wrote about a scuzzbag online loan operation bilking desperate people out of their meager funds like jackals prowling a maternity ward. Tridon Financial Service used a fictitious Newport News address and a legit-looking Web site to scam a working single mom in New Jersey out of an entire paycheck — plus countless others we'll never know about and for which Tridon hucksters will likely never be held accountable. The shysters got 25-year-old Stephanie Rodriguez of Mount Holly, N.J., who, per Tridon's instructions, wired off $894 to Canada as a "refundable insurance premium."

RICHMOND - After the federal trial against Bob and Maureen McDonnell ended Thursday with guilty verdicts on most counts, several legal and political analysts weighed in on what they saw as the meaning of the verdict. Todd Stone, a lawyer who often analyzes legal cases for a Richmond television station, said the jury may have seen the failing marriage defense as a conspiracy. "The defense made a great attempt to try to separate the two and to show they were having marital problems," Stone told the Daily Press.

The Middle Peninsula Chapter 58, Disabled American Veterans, has a wheelchair, walker and crutches available on loan to area residents who need them. A waiting list will be established for the articles so they can be given to others when they are returned. People who wish to borrow these items may call John McDaniel at 693-5471. The chapter is also accepting donations of similar equipment for the loan closet. Volunteers are also needed to work with veterans in the area or at VA Medical Centers.

Richmond will pull money from the construction budgets of the new city jail and schools to make a loan of up to $10 million to build a training camp for the Washington Redskins in time for the team to use it this summer, according to proposed legislation a City Council committee reviewed Thursday. The shift, however, will have no impact on the schools or jail projects, city officials say. They also say the money loaned to the city's Economic Development Authority, which will be tasked with building and running the facility, will be fully repaid.

By David Macaulay and David Nicholsondmacaulay@dailypress.com | 757-247-7838 | November 9, 2011

HAMPTON - In September 2010 Todd Bridgford, the executive director of the Virginia Air and Space Center, made an upbeat presentation to the Hampton City Council about progress at the downtown venue that had just celebrated its 15 t h year in the black. But just over a year later the venue is facing financial and other problems. Among them: •Bridgford recently resigned and was replaced by an interim manager appointed by the city. •Visitor numbers have slumped.

By Rosalind S. Helderman A Virginia Beach radiologist lent $50,000 to a real estate corporation owned by Gov. Robert McDonnell and his sister in 2010 — the same year the doctor was offered an appointment to a state medical board. Paul Davis, who said he met McDonnell in church and has been friends with the governor for about 12 years, said he believes the appointment offer was unrelated to the financial assistance he provided the governor. Davis said he declined the appointment because he believed it would take him away from his lucrative medical practice.

NEWPORT NEWS - A regional airport committee approved a taxpayer-funded $500,000 short-term, refundable loan for People Express on Wednesday, paving the way for the start-up airline to acquire an undisclosed charter airline and begin air service out of the Newport News-Williamsburg Airport this year. "This will simply help People Express pull together the financing and ultimately acquire the charter airline. This is the no-risk piece," said Florence Kingston, the Newport News economic development director who heads up the Regional Air Service Enhancement committee.

By Robert Brauchle, rbrauchle@dailypress.com | 757-247-2827 and By Robert Brauchle, rbrauchle@dailypress.com | 757-247-2827 | January 30, 2013

HAMPTON - The largest commercial development built within the city in the past 50 years has defaulted on a $168.5 million loan, according to a public notice announcing the upcoming auction of those properties. HSBC, a New York-based international banking firm, has asked attorneys from law firm LeClairRyan to sell the properties to the highest bidder after the bank restructured the loan with the owner of Peninsula Town Center on three separate occasions. The Feb. 14 auction will include 18 subdivided properties that make up nearly all of the Peninsula Town Center campus.

Editor's note: This is part of an everyday series exploring individual line items in state and local budgets. Read the entire series at www.dailypress.com/watchdog . GLOUCESTER - Over $38 million of school debt and $12 million of county debt make up Gloucester's long-term debt fund budget. The budget includes debt that was incurred as far back as 1996, and some that will not be paid off until 2034. As with any type of loan, each year the county must make payments towards the debt and this year's payments total $5,736,245.

By Robert Brauchle, rbrauchle@dailypress.com and By Robert Brauchle, rbrauchle@dailypress.com | February 20, 2014

HAMPTON - Artifacts used to depict Jefferson Davis' imprisonment at Fort Monroe will no longer be displayed at the Casemate Museum because the items were returned to the Davis family. The items, including a pipe used by the president of the Confederate States, were removed from display Wednesday. The family will ultimately decide what happens to the items, Casemate Museum director Robin Reed said. "Some artifacts are leaving because they belong to the Army," Fort Monroe Authority Executive Director Glenn Oder said.

By Robert Brauchle, rbrauchle@dailypress.com | 757-247-2827 and By Robert Brauchle, rbrauchle@dailypress.com | 757-247-2827 | February 1, 2014

HAMPTON — The Hampton Redevelopment and Housing Authority is recommending that the City Council back a proposal to issue $11.5 million in tax-free bonds to a private developer to build a senior citizen apartment complex along Woodland Road in Phoebus. Virginia Beach-based Marlyn Development Corp. wants to use the money to buy the property on the southwest corner of Woodland and Mercury Boulevard, clear the wooded area and build a 132-unit senior citizen apartment complex to be called the Woodlands at Phoebus.

When Pauline Honey, then 95, moved back to Virginia so her grandson could help care for her, the bill was more than her family expected. So to tide her over, she took out what she thought was a payday loan. Honey and her grandson, Randy Morse, thought a short-term, $450 loan — basically, an advance against her next three Social Security checks — would get her over the hump. "We were in a pretty desperate situation. It was a matter of paying for food and rent," Morse said.

NEWPORT NEWS - A Newport News couple has filed a lawsuit saying their Lee Hall home was improperly foreclosed on due to a mistake by the bank. Jerry and Miriam Tietjens filed a lawsuit alleging that their home was improperly sold despite them making monthly mortgage payments. The lawsuit is filed against Deutsch Bank National Trust Company, ReconTrust Company and ALG Trust. The Tietjens are asking a Newport News Circuit Court judge to rule the sale of their home to Deutsche void and to award them $25,000 in damages and attorney fees.

Background checks Thanks to the Daily Press for publishing the names of the delegates and senators who voted to seal the list of concealed carry permit holders. I will not vote for any of these delegates or senators although I have in the past since I didn't know their voting history. I do not believe any person should have the right to purchase unlimited weapons, or ammunition. Above all I cannot understand why we cannot have a background check of persons buying weapons.

Q: What does it mean to be "upside down" on a car loan? -- F.H., Newport News A: The term "upside down" in your car loan means a person owes more for the car than it is worth. It is not unusual for a buyer to be upside down in a car loan a couple of years into a five- or six-year loan. It happens frequently, especially with new car purchases when a car buyer doesn't put much money down. Consumer experts recommend making a down payment of 20 percent or more and financing for no longer than four years to avoid being upside down.

Q: What is a payday loan? - Q.W., Suffolk A: A payday loan is a short-term loan, typically extended for two weeks. Here's how they work: You need money today, but payday is a week or two away. You write a check dated for your payday and give it to the lender. You get the money, minus the interest fee. In two weeks, the lender cashes your check or charges you more interest to extend, or "roll over," the loan for another two weeks. The typical fee for a $100 cash advance is $15. Consumer advocates decry the loans for charging high interest to people living paycheck to paycheck.

By Rosalind S. Helderman A Virginia Beach radiologist lent $50,000 to a real estate corporation owned by Gov. Robert McDonnell and his sister in 2010 — the same year the doctor was offered an appointment to a state medical board. Paul Davis, who said he met McDonnell in church and has been friends with the governor for about 12 years, said he believes the appointment offer was unrelated to the financial assistance he provided the governor. Davis said he declined the appointment because he believed it would take him away from his lucrative medical practice.

As a registered nurse at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital for more than 20 years, Lorraine Ortega has noticed more and more serious asthma patients who need treatment. "I was alarmed by the increased number of acute asthmatics in our area, as well as people actually being diagnosed with lung cancer when they're non-smokers," Ortega said. One of those acute asthmatics happens to be Ortega's daughter, who's wound up several times in the emergency room. Ortega says she's also had her own share of "really, really bad lung congestion" and pulmonary issues, even though she, too, is a non-smoker.